I recently treated myself to a new Harvey Alpha HW615Pro, 15", 3 HP band saw. I took a long time coming to this decision as it meant having an electrician visit to run a 230 volt line, my shop is just under 13 x 16 and it is in the basement of our small "empty nest" bungalow. I was very concerned about getting the machine down the stairs due to its size and weight. Plus, I was also getting an Alpha 3 HP table saw at the same time, so how was I going get it all to fit?

Martin at Harvey offered good and timely advice and reassurances which helped me to eventually place the order. And I am so glad I did.

Unpacking and getting the saw in place involved renting an appliance dolly and calling some favours from two much younger friends. If the saw had been one inch bigger in any dimension, we would have been in big trouble at the 90 degree turn in the stair case (no way to go forward and no easy way to go back). But as it was, we got it in place with almost no damage to the drywall.

Set-up was really straightforward (I had reviewed the videos and manuals before the saw arrived and have some background knowledge). There was a minor hiccup in that the table would only tip 14 degree to the left but bit of grinding on the underside of the casting at the point of early contact got that sorted.

I have made several cuts including resawing a 6.5 inch wide block of walnut and a 7.5 inch wide board of white oak and was amazed at how easily this was accomplished. Not only was the speed of the cuts impressive, but also the accuracy. I was able to shave off a slab at a consistent 7/128ths thickness! I used to resaw quite a bit wider than I needed and then planed to final dimension. Moving forward, I will resaw much closer to my goal and plane a lot less (saving more wood for other projects). And the Compass RG2 roller-guide, which was an included bonus, is a dream to work with.

One improvement I might suggest is some sort of red-flag visible at the front of the machine when the tension has been let off the blade to reduce the risk of starting up with the blade loose. Another observation (and this may be universal with band saws) is that it is finicky getting access to adjust the lower blade guides.

Overall, the build quality seems great (early days yet but still...), service has been very good and I am really please with my new toy. I look forward to many years of making dust with it. Oh, and BTW, the dust collection is miles better than my old Delta 14" (which had none).

Attached is a short video of my tiny work-in-progress-shop. Many things, including the band saw are on casters so I can shuffle them around as needed.